Abstract: The use of composite materials in offshore engineering for deep sea oil production riser systems has drawn considerable interest due to the potential weight savings and improvement in durability. The design of composite risers consists of two stages: (1) local design based on critical local load cases, and (2) global analysis of the full length composite riser under global loads and assessment of critical locations. In the first stage, eight different material combinations were selected and their laminate configurations optimised under local load considerations. Stage two includes a final local stress analysis of the critical sections of the riser under the combined loads determined in the global analysis. This paper describes two design methodologies of the composite riser to provide minimum structural weight and shows that the use of off angle fibre orientations in addition to axial and hoop reinforcements offer substantial weight savings and ensure the structural capacity.
Abstract: With the increasing number of on-chip components and the critical requirement for processing power, Chip Multiprocessor (CMP) has gained wide acceptance in both academia and industry during the last decade. However, the conventional bus-based onchip communication schemes suffer from very high communication delay and low scalability in large scale systems. Network-on-Chip (NoC) has been proposed to solve the bottleneck of parallel onchip communications by applying different network topologies which separate the communication phase from the computation phase. Observing that the memory bandwidth of the communication between on-chip components and off-chip memory has become a critical problem even in NoC based systems, in this paper, we propose a novel 3D NoC with on-chip Dynamic Random Access Memory (DRAM) in which different layers are dedicated to different functionalities such as processors, cache or memory. Results show that, by using our proposed architecture, average link utilization has reduced by 10.25% for SPLASH-2 workloads. Our proposed design costs 1.12% less execution cycles than the traditional design on average.
Abstract: in dissimilar material joints, failure often occurs
along the interface between two materials due to stress singularity.
Stress distribution and its concentration depend on materials and
geometry of the junction. Inhomogenity of stress distribution at the
interface of junction of two materials with different elastic modules
and stress concentration in this zone are the main factors resulting in
rupture of the junction. Effect of joining angle in the interface of
aluminum-polycarbonate will be discussed in this paper. Computer
simulation and finite element analysis by ABAQUS showed that
convex interfacial joint leads to stress reduction at junction corners in
compare with straight joint. This finding is confirmed by photoelastic
experimental results.
Abstract: Capacitive electrocardiogram (ECG) measurement is an attractive approach for long-term health monitoring. However, there is little literature available on its implementation, especially for multichannel system in standard ECG leads. This paper begins from the design criteria for capacitive ECG measurement and presents a multichannel limb-lead capacitive ECG system with conductive fabric tapes pasted on a double layer PCB as the capacitive sensors. The proposed prototype system incorporates a capacitive driven-body (CDB) circuit to reduce the common-mode power-line interference (PLI). The presented prototype system has been verified to be stable by theoretic analysis and practical long-term experiments. The signal quality is competitive to that acquired by commercial ECG machines. The feasible size and distance of capacitive sensor have also been evaluated by a series of tests. From the test results, it is suggested to be greater than 60 cm2 in sensor size and be smaller than 1.5 mm in distance for capacitive ECG measurement.
Abstract: There is a great deal of interest in constructing Double Skin Facade (DSF) structures which are considered as modern movement in field of Energy Conservation, renewable energies, and Architecture design. This trend provides many conclusive alternatives which are frequently associated with sustainable building. In this paper a building with Double Skin Facade is considered in the semiarid climate of Tehran, Iran, in order to consider the DSF-s performance during hot seasons. Mathematical formulations calculate solar heat gain by the external skin. Moreover, Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulations were performed on the case study building to enhance effectiveness of the facade. The conclusion divulged difference of gained energy by the cavity and room with and without blind and louvers. Some solutions were introduced to surge the performance of natural ventilation by plunging the cooling loads in summer.
Abstract: Nowadays there are lots of applications of power and
free conveyors in logistics. They are the most frequently used
conveyor systems worldwide. Overhead conveyor technologies like
power and free systems are used in the most intra-logistics
applications in trade and industry. The automotive, food, beverage
and textile industry as well as aeronautic catering or engineering are
among the applications. Power and free systems employ different
manufacturing intervals in manufacturing as well as in production as
temporary store and buffer. Depending on the application area, power
and free conveyors are equipped with target controls enabling
complex distribution-and sorting tasks. This article introduces a new
power and free conveyor design in intra-logistics and explains its
components. According to the explanation of the components, a
model is created by means of their technical characteristics. Through
the CAD software, the model is visualized. After that, the static
analysis is evaluated. This analysis helps the calculation of the
mandatory state of structures under force action. This powerful model
helps companies achieve lower development costs as well as quicker
market maturity.
Abstract: Wireless Mesh Networks (WMNs) are an emerging
technology for last-mile broadband access. In WMNs, similar to ad
hoc networks, each user node operates not only as a host but also as a
router. User packets are forwarded to and from an Internet-connected
gateway in multi-hop fashion. The WMNs can be integrated with
other networking technologies i.e. ad hoc networks, to implement a
smooth network extension. The meshed topology provides good
reliability and scalability, as well as low upfront investments. Despite
the recent start-up surge in WMNs, much research remains to be
done in standardizing the functional parameters of WMNs to fully
exploit their full potential. An edifice of the security concerns of
these networks is authentication of a new client joining an integrated
ad hoc network and such a scenario will require execution of a multihop
authentication technique. Our endeavor in this paper is to
introduce a secure authentication technique, with light over-heads
that can be conveniently implemented for the ad-hoc nodes forming
clients of an integrated WMN, thus facilitating their inter-operability.
Abstract: Zeolite A and MCM-41 have extensive applications in basic science, petrochemical science, energy conservation/storage, medicine, chemical sensor, air purification, environmentally benign composite structure and waste remediation. However, the use of zeolite A and MCM-41 in these areas, especially environmental remediation, are restricted due to prohibitive production cost. Efficient recycling of and resource recovery from coal fly ash has been a major topic of current international research interest, aimed at achieving sustainable development of human society from the viewpoints of energy, economy, and environmental strategy. This project reported an original, novel, green and fast methods to produce nano-porous zeolite A and MCM-41 materials from coal fly ash. For zeolite A, this novel production method allows a reduction by half of the total production time while maintaining a high degree of crystallinity of zeolite A which exists in a narrower particle size distribution. For MCM-41, this remarkably green approach, being an environmentally friendly process and reducing generation of toxic waste, can produce pure and long-range ordered MCM-41 materials from coal fly ash. This approach took 24 h at 25 oC to produce 9 g of MCM-41 materials from 30 g of the coal fly ash, which is the shortest time and lowest reaction temperature required to produce pure and ordered MCM-41 materials (having the largest internal surface area) compared to the values reported in the literature. Performance evaluation of the produced zeolite A and MCM-41 materials in wastewater treatment and air pollution control were reported. The residual fly ash was also converted to zeolite Na-P1 which showed good performance in removal of multi-metal ions in wastewater. In wastewater treatment, compared to commercial-grade zeolite A, adsorbents produced from coal fly ash were effective in removing multi heavy metal ions in water and could be an alternative material for treatment of wastewater. In methane emission abatement, the zeolite A (produced from coal fly ash) achieved similar methane removal efficiency compared to the zeolite A prepared from pure chemicals. This report provides the guidance for production of zeolite A and MCM-41 from coal fly ash by a cost-effective approach which opens potential applications of these materials in environmental industry. Finally, environmental and economic aspects of production of zeolite A and MCM-41 from coal fly ash were discussed.
Abstract: Basel III (or the Third Basel Accord) is a global
regulatory standard on bank capital adequacy, stress testing and
market liquidity risk agreed upon by the members of the Basel
Committee on Banking Supervision in 2010-2011, and scheduled to
be introduced from 2013 until 2018. Basel III is a comprehensive set
of reform measures. These measures aim to; (1) improve the banking
sector-s ability to absorb shocks arising from financial and economic
stress, whatever the source, (2) improve risk management and
governance, (3) strengthen banks- transparency and disclosures.
Similarly the reform target; (1) bank level or micro-prudential,
regulation, which will help raise the resilience of individual banking
institutions to periods of stress. (2) Macro-prudential regulations,
system wide risk that can build up across the banking sector as well
as the pro-cyclical implication of these risks over time. These two
approaches to supervision are complementary as greater resilience at
the individual bank level reduces the risk system wide shocks.
Macroeconomic impact of Basel III; OECD estimates that the
medium-term impact of Basel III implementation on GDP growth is
in the range -0,05 percent to -0,15 percent per year. On the other hand
economic output is mainly affected by an increase in bank lending
spreads as banks pass a rise in banking funding costs, due to higher
capital requirements, to their customers. Consequently the estimated
effects on GDP growth assume no active response from monetary
policy. Basel III impact on economic output could be offset by a
reduction (or delayed increase) in monetary policy rates by about 30
to 80 basis points. The aim of this paper is to create a framework
based on the recent regulations in order to prevent financial crises.
Thus the need to overcome the global financial crisis will contribute
to financial crises that may occur in the future periods. In the first
part of the paper, the effects of the global crisis on the banking
system examine the concept of financial regulations. In the second
part; especially in the financial regulations and Basel III are analyzed.
The last section in this paper explored the possible consequences of
the macroeconomic impacts of Basel III.
Abstract: Comparison of two approaches for the simulation of
the dynamic behaviour of a permanent magnet linear actuator is
presented. These are full coupled model, where the electromagnetic
field, electric circuit and mechanical motion problems are solved
simultaneously, and decoupled model, where first a set of static
magnetic filed analysis is carried out and then the electric circuit and
mechanical motion equations are solved employing bi-cubic spline
approximations of the field analysis results. The results show that the
proposed decoupled model is of satisfactory accuracy and gives more
flexibility when the actuator response is required to be estimated for
different external conditions, e.g. external circuit parameters or
mechanical loads.
Abstract: Multi-energy systems will enhance the system
reliability and power quality. This paper presents an integrated
approach for the design and operation of distributed energy resources
(DER) systems, based on energy hub modeling. A multi-objective
optimization model is developed by considering an integrated view of
electricity and natural gas network to analyze the optimal design and
operating condition of DER systems, by considering two conflicting
objectives, namely, minimization of total cost and the minimization
of environmental impact which is assessed in terms of CO2
emissions. The mathematical model considers energy demands of the
site, local climate data, and utility tariff structure, as well as technical
and financial characteristics of the candidate DER technologies. To
provide energy demands, energy systems including photovoltaic, and
co-generation systems, boiler, central power grid are considered. As
an illustrative example, a hotel in Iran demonstrates potential
applications of the proposed method. The results prove that
increasing the satisfaction degree of environmental objective leads to
increased total cost.
Abstract: The ever growing sentiment of environmentalism across the globe has made many people think on the green lines. But most of such ideas halt short of implementation because of the short term economic viability issues with the concept of going green. In this paper we have tried to amalgamate the green concept with social entrepreneurship for solving a variety of issues faced by the society today. In addition the paper also tries to ensure that the short term economic viability does not act as a deterrent. The paper comes up three sustainable models of social entrepreneurship which tackle a wide assortment of issues such as nutrition problem, land problems, pollution problems and employment problems. The models described fall under the following heads: - Spirulina cultivation: The model addresses nutrition, land and employment issues. It deals with cultivation of a blue green alga called Spirulina which can be used as a very nutritious food. Also, the implementation of this model would bring forth employment to the poor people of the area. - Biocomposites: The model comes up with various avenues in which biocomposites can be used in an economically sustainable manner. This model deals with the environmental concerns and addresses the depletion of natural resources. - Packaging material from empty fruit bunches (EFB) of oil palm: This one deals with air and land pollution. It is intended to be a substitute for packaging materials made from Styrofoam and plastics which are non-biodegradable. It takes care of the biodegradability and land pollution issues. It also reduces air pollution as the empty fruit bunches are not incinerated. All the three models are sustainable and do not deplete the natural resources any further. This paper explains each of the models in detail and deals with the operational/manufacturing procedures and cost analysis while also throwing light on the benefits derived and sustainability aspects.
Abstract: The research object was apple-black currant
marmalade candies. Experiments were carried out at the Faculty of
Food Technology of the Latvia University of Agriculture. An active
packaging in combination with modified atmosphere (MAP, CO2
100%) was examined and compared with traditional packaging in air
ambiance. Polymer Multibarrier 60 and paper bags were used.
Influence of iron based oxygen absorber in sachets of 500 cc
obtained from Mitsubishi Gas Chemical Europe Ageless® was tested
on the quality during the shelf of marmalade. Samples of 80±5 g
were packaged in polymer pouches (110 mm x 110 mm),
hermetically sealed by MULTIVAC C300 vacuum chamber machine,
and stored in room temperature +20.0±1.0 °C. The physiochemical
properties – weight losses, moisture content, hardness, aw, pH, colour,
changes of atmosphere content (CO2 and O2) in headspace of packs,
and microbial conditions were analysed before packaging and in the
1st, 3rd , 5th, 8th, 11th and 15th weeks of storage.
Abstract: In the present work an investigation of the effects of
the air frontal velocity, relative humidity and dry air temperature on
the heat transfer characteristics of plain finned tube evaporator has
been conducted. Using an appropriate correlation for the air side heat
transfer coefficient the temperature distribution along the fin surface
was calculated using a dimensionless temperature distribution. For a
constant relative humidity and bulb temperature, it is found that the
temperature distribution decreases with increasing air frontal
velocity. Apparently, it is attributed to the condensate water film
flowing over the fin surface. When dry air temperature and face
velocity are being kept constant, the temperature distribution
decreases with the increase of inlet relative humidity. An increase in
the inlet relative humidity is accompanied by a higher amount of
moisture on the fin surface. This results in a higher amount of latent
heat transfer which involves higher fin surface temperature. For the
influence of dry air temperature, the results here show an increase in
the dimensionless temperature parameter with a decrease in bulb
temperature. Increasing bulb temperature leads to higher amount of
sensible and latent heat transfer when other conditions remain
constant.
Abstract: The present paper reports the removal of Cd(II) and
Zn(II) ions using synthetic Zeolit NaA. The adsorption capacity of
the sorbent (Zeolite NaA) strongly depends on simultaneous or not
simultaneous (concurrent) presence of Cd(II) and Zn(II) in the
sorbate. When Cd(II) and Zn(II) are present simultaneously
(concurrently) in the sorbate, Zn(II) ions were sorbed at higher rate.
Equilibrium data fitted Langmuir, Freundlich and Tempkin isotherms
well. The applicability of the isotherm equation to describe the
adsorption process was judged by the correlation coefficients R2. The
Langmuir model yielded the best fit with R2 values equal to or higher
than 0.970, as compared to the Freundlich and Tempkin models. The
fact that 1/n values range from 0.322 to 0.755 indicates that the
adsorption of Cd(II) and Zn(II) ions from aqueous solutions also
favored by the Freundlich model.
Abstract: The paper deals with the analysis of triggering
conditions and evolution processes of piping phenomena, in relation
to both mechanical and hydraulic aspects. In particular, the aim of
the study is to predict slope instabilities triggered by piping,
analysing the conditions necessary for a flow failure to occur. Really,
the mechanical effect involved in the loads redistribution around the
pipe is coupled to the drainage process arising from higher
permeability of the pipe. If after the pipe formation, the drainage
goes prevented for pipe clogging, the porewater pressure increase can
lead to the failure or even the liquefaction, with a subsequent flow
slide. To simulate the piping evolution and to verify relevant stability
conditions, a iterative coupled modelling approach has been pointed
out. As example, the proposed tool has been applied to the Stava
Valley disaster (July, 1985), demonstrating that piping might be one
of triggering phenomena of the tailings dams collapse.
Abstract: The paper compares the treatment of fractions in a
typical undergraduate college curriculum and in abstract algebra
textbooks. It stresses that the main difference is that the
undergraduate curriculum treats equivalent fractions as equal, and
this treatment eventually leads to paradoxes and impairs the students-
ability to perceive ratios, proportions, radicals and rational exponents
adequately. The paper suggests a simplified version of rigorous
theory of fractions suitable for regular college curriculum.
Abstract: The empirical studies on High Performance Work Systems (HPWSs) and their impacts on firm performance have remarkably little in the developing countries. This paper reviews literatures on the HPWSs practices in different work settings, Western and Asian countries. A review on the empirical research leads to a conclusion that, country differences influence the Human Resource Management (HRM) practices. It is anticipated that there are similarities and differences in the extent of implementation of HPWSs practices by the Malaysian manufacturing firms due to the organizational contextual factors and, the HPWSs have a significant impact on firms- better performance amongst MNCs and local firms.
Abstract: Arvia®, a spin-out company of University of Manchester, UK is commercialising a water treatment technology for the removal of low concentrations of organics from water. This technology is based on the adsorption of organics onto graphite based adsorbents coupled with their electrochemical regeneration in a simple electrochemical cell. In this paper, the potential of the process to adsorb microorganisms and electrochemically disinfect them present in water has been demonstrated. Bench scale experiments have indicated that the process of adsorption using graphite adsorbents with electrochemical regeneration can be used for water disinfection effectively. The most likely mechanisms of disinfection of water through this process include direct electrochemical oxidation and electrochemical chlorination.
Abstract: In this study the adsorption of Cu (II) ions from aqueous solutions on synthetic zeolite NaA was evaluated. The effect of solution temperature and the determination of the kinetic parameters of adsorption of Cu(II) from aqueous solution on zeolite NaA is important in understanding the adsorption mechanism. Variables of the system include adsorption time, temperature (293- 328K), initial solution concentration and pH for the system. The sorption kinetics of the copper ions were found to be strongly dependent on pH (the optimum pH 3-5), solute ion concentration and temperature (293 – 328 K). It was found, the pseudo-second-order model was the best choice among all the kinetic models to describe the adsorption behavior of Cu(II) onto ziolite NaA, suggesting that the adsorption mechanism might be a chemisorptions process The activation energy of adsorption (Ea) was determined as Cu(II) 13.5 kJ mol-1. The low value of Ea shows that Cu(II) adsorption process by zeolite NaA may be an activated chemical adsorption. The thermodynamic parameters (ΔG0, ΔH0, and ΔS0) were also determined from the temperature dependence. The results show that the process of adsorption Cu(II) is spontaneous and endothermic process and rise in temperature favors the adsorption.